Translated: Sei, MTL-sensei-tachi
Edited: Sei, Grammarly no Danna

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Epilogue | I've Decided | Remake our Life!


Part 1

The meeting was in the evening, but everyone had already gathered early.

"Hashiba-san, welcome home. Thank you for your hard work."

Saikawa's greeting finally lost some of its awkwardness.

"Ahre? Did you have any lessons today? No, it's summer vacation, gahaha!"

Hikawa is joking.

Since it was the day after we returned from our trip, we felt somewhat tired.

"Fuwaah... Kyoya, so what's this important talk about..."

Nanako still looked sleepy.

"A new member appears here! I'd laugh if it was something like that!"

Hikawa jokingly said,

"R-Really? If so, I'd prefer a woman."

Saikawa took it seriously and firmly grasped Nanako's arm, who was beside her.

"Hashiba, stop wasting time and say it now."

Kawasegawa was calm as usual.

But only today, it seemed like she had my back.

"Okay, I'll tell you."

Clearing my throat,

"I've decided on a concept for the video ―― we're going to make."

After a pause, ‘Ooh’, everyone raised their voices.

"Yatta~! Now this will give me a hint to write a song~!"

Nanako is happy and raise her hands.

"I-I can also solidify the image of Meku-chan!"

Saikawa clenched her hands into fists and nodded vigorously.

"So, what's the concept?"

Hikawa looks curious and is waiting for my words.

The place quieted down. I looked at Kawasegawa. She remained silent and nodded slightly.

"Then I'll tell you."

I took a deep breath.


Kuroda's words come back to me one after another.

You are also a scoundrel, a bastard, and an outrageous person who will cut people down for the sake of results.

He is right. That was right.

I feel nauseous every time I remember the extent of what I have lost. I stabbed innocent people all over the place, against my sinful self.

Realizing this, I changed my view of the world.

There are a number of routes in life, and things move through a series of choices.

I realized this during this time travel. So I decided to put myself in the middle of it and watch how the world changes in the interweaving of the people who are part of the event.

The pile of sticky notes in the closet is a mass of my ego. I treat people like a frame, manipulate them, and try to lead them to the "ideal world" that I want.

But that is not happiness for me. I left it in the future and came back here.

Kuroda said. He was willing to sacrifice everything in order to create a work. If he could finally create a masterpiece, everything would fit into it.

I think it is one solution. But I don't think it is an absolute solution.

(This is the beginning of my solution, Kuroda)

I, with this move, decide on a new route.

A route that will be happy for everyone and I will be the devil.

"I was reminded once again of what is most essential to the video genre."

To be precise, it's not just the video.

To everything in this world that has the concept of time.

"This will be the concept for the video we will make."

I think it is necessary.

In the heartless and ruthless time, it gives us color and possibilities.

space

"What we need. It's ―― a story."


Part 2

It's summer. It's hot.

It is especially hot here. This may be because it is a basin area, but it may also be due to the fact that the area is a series of wide lowlands.

It's been sunny and hot since morning.

It was hot again yesterday. The helpers were weeding the garden and even took a break because they got a little sunburnt. I don't think he had to work outside on a day like this, but apparently he had no choice because that's what he is contractually obligated to do.

Why don't we just weed the garden ourselves? That's what I've been thinking, and I've been pulling weeds since this morning.

There's nothing to do anyway, and that's just fine. In the past, when I had a little free time, I used it for something else, but that is no longer the case.

By mid-afternoon we had finished plucking all the grass and I stuffed it into a garbage bag, which turned out to be two 8-liter bags, so I took it out to a nearby dumpster and just now got back.

"Ara, you're back already?"

From the back of the house, I heard my mom's voice.

"I'm here. What?"

"Dad told me that he has a meeting with the teachers tomorrow and that you should greet them just as soon as possible. He told me to tell you that too."

"...Yeah, I got it."

I replied, took a breath and shook my head.

There is a big sun in the sky.

Summer in Osaka was hot, but summer in Saitama is just as hot. And it is annoying. The temperature should not be so different, but I think the humidity is higher here.

"...I remembered it again"

Shake my head. Shake it again and again.

I've decided not to remember those days anymore, but I still remember them from time to time. It has only been about three months, so perhaps that is to be expected.

"Mom, I'm going out for a minute. I'll be back in the evening."

I said louder so the house could hear me and headed for the garage.

I straddle the motorcycle I bought in Osaka and start the engine.

I was thinking of leaving this bike over there as well. I thought about doing that to forget, because I have too many memories, and those memories are more of the painful ones.

"... In the end, I did drag it."

All of this, to go and throw it all away cleanly, was a complete failure.

I have left a mountain of unfinished business. I realize that I am a hopeless human being.

"Let's see where I go... Well, there's nowhere to go"

For now, I head toward the high school.

The area where the house is located is covered with rice fields all around. As the name suggests, the scenery of Kawagoe changes as one crosses the river. This side is a rural landscape, while the other side is a residential and commercial area.

When I was a child, I hated that school was so far from my house. Above all, I felt uncomfortable being dropped off and picked up. I didn't even have the freedom to play with my friends.

Both middle school and high school were the best high level school in the city.

I don't remember much about middle school. I barely remember high school either. The only senior I was close with was cut off due to various reasons.

"How are you doing ...... senpai"

I was introduced to this bar through this connection. I met many fun people here.

A person who graduated from a famous national university but is wandering around living a hippie-like lifestyle.

Conversely, a president who has only graduated from middle school but has more than 200 employees with outstanding management sense.

A woman who was into hosts and spent money like crazy, but woke up and started a successful business cultivating hosts in the opposite direction.

Looking at the adults who come to these places, I couldn't help but think that the people who work at my parents' house may be respectable, but they seem very boring.

So, I left home, prepared to be disowned by my parents, and sought a path to the University of the Arts, where there would be other idiots just like me.

But it's over. It's over.

Let's not think about what I left behind anymore.


I arrived at a large open space. The sun was still shining hot, and I took off my helmet and took a deep breath.

Sweat is pouring down my face one after the other. It gets in my eyes and hurts.

Even after wiping it off with my arm, it still lingered on my cheek, down my neck, and soaked my shirt.

Even though the mind has been dead for a long time now, the body is still moving lively.

It's ironic. When I wanted my body to move, it collapsed and stopped, but as a result of resting because I had nothing to do, my strength and reactions returned to about the same level they were in high school.

Now I'm like a robot that wakes up in the morning, cleans the house, and does chores. The only human-like parts of my life are riding my bike and skipping around like this with no place to go and sweating like a thermometer in response to the temperature.

And today, even now, I'm still sensitive to the temperature. I keep asking myself with my rotting brain what it all means.

And then they say it again. The same thing. Like a cliché, ever since summer arrived. As if to reaffirm that this living hell, this gentle hell, will continue.


For the umpteenth time, sweat beaded on my forehead. I wiped it off with the palm of my hand and took a breath.

"–It's hot again today"


Afterword

Producing is a difficult job, and it is not a matter of creating a cohesive group and calling it quits. A good producer is able to create the right amount of tension between staff members and successfully combine them to create a chemical reaction in each part of the production.

But tensions do not always remain in good balance. Nor about chemical reactions. Not always with good results. There have been many projects that were meant to fly high in the sky but didn't even take off. It is really ...... a difficult job.

In Volume 5, we are going to tell you, albeit only in passing, about the difficulties of such a production process. How do we raise the spirits of writers whose motivation has declined? What is the right amount of stimulation? And can you leave someone who is important to you with another person or organization if you want the production to succeed? For Kyoya, it was a story of continuing trials and tribulations, but the conclusion he found at the end of it all was to regain what he had lost. In the next volume, the story will take a major turn. It will take some more time, but I hope you will look forward to it.


This is an announcement. As we have announced in the insert of this volume, we have decided to make a comic book version of Bokurema. Preparations are already underway, and I can't wait for you to see it. It will be published in Kodansha's Wednesday Sirius, and will be written by Hirameki Bonjin-sensei. Please look forward to it. We are also planning to produce an image song for the film. We are also looking forward to it.

And finally, Bokurema has a spin-off project in the works. We are currently discussing with Editor T-san and Eretto-san about what kind of content we would like to include, but we think it will probably be something related to a certain character who has suddenly become more and more prominent recently. We will let you know as soon as it is decided.


Acknowledgements. Eretto-san and Editor T-san, thank you so much for everything you do for us. Recently, I have been attending more and more events with you two, and every time I hear from you, I feel more and more happy that I have been able to work with these people. We will do our best to create a good product, and we look forward to your continued support.

And finally, to the readers who have been reading. I am very happy to see that many of you have been following me closely despite the fact that this is the type of story that pulls a lot of things here and there. The next volume is going to be a lot of work again, but I hope you will stick around to see it through.

See you in the next volume, Volume 6. Please take care.

Kio Nachi bow



E-book bonus newly written short story "[Intermezzo] [saury in Meguro] [Children's name]"

I made it carelessly and it produced good results, so I treated the same material with stupid care and this time it failed. This is a common story regardless of the situation. When many people are involved, or when discovery and other concerns are involved, things generally tend to end up with ironic results.

In "The Pacific saury of Meguro," too, the lord is grateful for the Pacific saury from Meguro, which has nothing to do with the sea, but the experience of success may contain a kind of poison that causes us to appreciate things related to it without thinking. Rakugo is full of such lessons and stories about the world, and I have used them on many occasions. (Note: Japanese comic storytelling)

So that day I was in a meeting with Shinoaki, and we were using rakugo as a metaphor there as well. And we were just talking about "singing praises to a child".

"Does Kyoya-kun like children?"

Suddenly, Shinoaki asked me such a question.

"Eh, I like them, normally."

I have a younger sister at home, and it wasn't particularly hard for me to take care of her when we’re kid. So I just answered honestly, but when Shinoaki said that to me, I couldn't help but think of that future scene.

"I see. I like them too~"

If this had been the end of the conversation, it would have been a heartwarming one, but today's topic of conversation grew even more involved from this point.

"If you had a child, what would you name them?"

T-That's a very deep talk, Shinoaki-san.

"Etto, that... I don't really have a preference. I think it's more like asking the other person what they like and then making a decision."

Speaking of which, how did I in the future decide on the name of my child with Shinoaki? Was it going to be a boy or a girl, and which one was going to name it.

"Fuhn. That sounds like Kyoya-kun~ ... Fuwaah."

It didn't seem to be a special topic of conversation, and after expressing her impressions, Shinoaki's head tipped back onto the desk with a yawn. Immediately after I put the blanket over her shoulders, I found her murmuring, "Thank you~," and then she was already sleeping.

The Shinoaki I see before me now is a natural. She may be a top creator of her generation, and she may become a top illustrator. I made the mistake before by removing the bones and grease.

I don't know what the future holds, but I hope I won't be told later that "the Meguro was good".


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